THE BUDGET 2024
THE BUDGET 2024
As we look ahead businesses will be looking at the budget delivered by the Chancellor , with rising costs still impacting many of our business community this is really the time he can give back to our businesses and develop a sustainable growth plan .
Some recommendations Wirral Chamber along with other British Chamber of Commerce ( BCC ) colleagues submitted were ;
• Government to match industry-led funding of £ 3m for planning qualifications to help plug the lack of local resources .
• Ministers should commit to funding business-led Local Skills Improvement Plans ( LSIPs ) beyond the current 2025 cut-off point to at least 2028 .
• The VAT registration review should be restarted with a view to removing the existing cliff edge .
• Government should reform business rates to make it a tax that incentives growth .
• The Chancellor should introduce a new internationally competitive tax-free shopping scheme .
Findings from the BCC Insights Unit ’ s ‘ first major business survey of 2024 highlights the urgency for action at the Budget .
Meanwhile , over a quarter of companies ( 26 %) say they have changed plans to upgrade or open premises as a direct result of business rates .
38 % of responding businesses say they are now paying more following the 2023 rates revaluation .
Current business conditions are among the hardest seen in generations as multiple economic crises converge . The BCC ’ s Quarterly Economic Survey for Q4 2023 showed that while business confidence has improved slightly , most firms continue to report no improvement to sales , cash flow or investment .
Our research speaks volumes , revealing the struggles of small and medium enterprises weighed down by burdensome business rates and suppressed by VAT thresholds . It ' s time for action . The Chancellor ' s forthcoming statement must represent fairness in rates and a fresh review of VAT registration , breathing life into the ambitions of our entrepreneurs .
With the clock ticking before the General Election , the Budget must outline the sustainable growth plan businesses are crying out for .
43 % of responding firms with a turnover of less than £ 85,000 say they are concerned about growing revenue beyond this specifically because of the requirement to pay VAT . wirrallife . com 73